Favorite Inspiring Quotes
Freedom
Commentary by Peter Shepherd

“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” ~ Albert Camus
That freedom is within us, and it is based on mindfulness. As Jeffrey Borenstein said, "Freedom is that instant between when someone tells you to do something and when you decide how to respond."
“Responsibility is the price of freedom.” ~ Elbert Hubbard
JC. Wright Mills explains what this responsibility entails: "Freedom is not merely the opportunity to do as one pleases; neither is it merely the opportunity to choose between set alternatives. Freedom is, first of all, the chance to formulate the available choices, to argue over them - and then, the opportunity to choose." And Thucydide goes further: "The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage." Freedom lies in being bold, being yourself.
“You find freedom inside - nowhere else. In the heart of every being is that one space which is free, which is filled with Peace, and which is full of Love.” ~ Prem Rawat
It is our essence and as such it is so precious. As Moshe Dayan said, "Freedom is the oxygen of the soul."
“While I was chained to a wall and being tortured, I realized, through the screaming of my mind, that even in that shackled, bloody helplessness, I was still free: free to hate the men who were torturing me, or to forgive them. It doesn't sound like much, I know. But in the flinch and bite of the chain, when it's all you've got, that freedom is a universe of possibility. And the choice you make between hating and forgiving, can become the story of your life.” ~ Gregory David Roberts
As Viktor Frankl said, "Everything can be taken from a man but one thing; the last of the human freedoms - to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."
Here’s some further reading on this theme...
What Do You Want? ~ by Philip Humbert
Failure to decide what you want and how you'll get it leads to a life of restless frustration. Sometimes, it's a sense of having "missed the boat" or "not knowing." For others, it can be a painful sense that "this is not the life I imagined for myself." Some people struggle with depression because they've never figured out what they want or an effective strategy for getting it. Continues...